It's a day of mixed fortunes for the pound so far, with gains against some currencies tempered by losses against others. Sterling is down 0.18% against the dollar at $1.3857, but it's up 0.12% against the euro at €1.1327. Of course, that could all change at midday, when Bank of England governor Mark Carney will deliver his quarterly assessment of the UK economy in his inflation report.

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Some evidence this morning that landlords may be beginning to struggle, as a result of a series of tax changes.

In the last quarter of 2017 there were 5,100 buy-to-let mortgages in arrears by more than 2.5% - a rise of 2% on the previous quarter.

Figures from UK Finance - which represents the High Street banks – suggest the numbers of landlords in serious arrears has risen even faster.

As many as 1,200 buy-to-let mortgages were in arrears by more than 10%. That’s a rise of 20% on the third quarter of 2017.

Landlords face an extra 3% stamp duty charge, and a gradual loss of tax relief on mortgage payments. They also have to pay 28% capital gains tax when selling a property.

Among ordinary homeowners, the number of people in arrears actually fell by 7% over the same period.

Thomas Cook is facing significant margin pressure in holidays to Spain that is eating into profits, reckons senior market analyst Neil Wilson of ETX Capital.

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The Forties pipeline, which connects dozens of North Sea oil and gas installations with the UK mainland, is back up and running after a brief shutdown on Wednesday.

The Ineos-owned pipeline pumps about 450,000 barrels of oil every day, roughly a quarter of all North Sea crude oil output, as well as a third of the UK's total offshore natural gas production.

An Ineos spokesman said oil and gas had begun flowing again after the firm successfully dealt with an incident involving a valve at the Kinneil gas plant near Grangemouth.

It was the second time in recent weeks that the pipeline had suffered disruption. It was previously shut in mid-December for several weeks, after the discovery of a crack near Netherley in Aberdeenshire.

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Nissan says the earnings hit from a safety inspection scandal will be bigger than previously expected.

The carmaker expects full-year operating profit of 565bn yen ($5.2bn; £3.6bn) for the fiscal year to March 2018 - that's down 12.4% from its estimate last year.

Last year Nissan recalled 1.2 million vehicles in Japan after regulators said safety checks did not meet domestic requirements.

Japan's second largest carmaker also posted a heavy fall in third-quarter operating profit, as its inspection woes and higher discounts in the US slugged earnings.

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Stocks in Hong Kong found firmer footing on Thursday, pushing higher after 5 days of losses.

The Hang Seng closed up 0.4%, or 128.07 points, at 30,451.27.

The positive mood spread across most of Asia as investors waded back into equities after some volatile sessions.

Japan's Nikkei 225 index added 1.1%, or 245.49 points, to end at 21,890.96, while South Korea's Kospi index put on 0.5%, or 11.06 points, to close at 2,407.62. Australia's S&P/ASX 200 finished up 0.2%, or 13.90 points, at 5,890.700.

China's Shanghai Composite was the outlier - the index closed down 1.4%, or 47.11 points, at 3,262.148.

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Department store chain Debenhams has confirmed it is set to slash 320 store management roles as it pushes through a major cost-cutting drive.

In a statement, it said: "A review of our store structure has identified significant cost savings by reducing the complexity of management roles in stores as well as processes to optimise and standardise ways of working.

"The effect is that potentially 320 positions are at risk of redundancy - approximately 25% of store management roles."

It added that it is "consulting with individuals affected". The store said its new structure would be in place by the end of March.

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Japan's Softbank is in talks with insurance giant Swiss Re about a potential minority investment.

The Japanese telecommunications giant, which is one of the world's biggest technology companies, has been on a shopping spree in recent months, making a series of high-profile tech investments.

The firm has also backed ride-sharing firms including Southeast Asian taxi-hailing app Grab and China's Didi Chuxing.

But Swiss Re said its discussions with Softbank were at a very early stage, external.

"There is no certainty that any transaction will be agreed, nor as to the terms, timing, or form of any transaction," the insurance firm said.

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Contract caterer Compass saw its shares climb 6% to 1506.50p in early trading this morning. Why?

It posted a positive trading update for the first quarter with revenue climbing 5.9%.

Danny Cox, analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown commented: "As always, Compass are focused on the fine details, driving efficiencies in sourcing, operations and management. In the UK, this is all the more important as the group copes with higher Living Wage costs, in common with other labour intensive businesses."

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The Bank of England is expected to keep interest rates unchanged today, but speculation is mounting over another hike as soon as May after the economy's surprisingly strong end to 2017.

Experts predict the next rate rise might now come by the summer after official data showed the economy grew by a better-than-expected 0.5% at the end of 2017, up from 0.4% in the third quarter.

John Wraith, an economist at UBS, said: "The stronger-than-expected out-turn for fourth-quarter GDP (gross domestic product) and the better momentum the economy starts 2018 with as a result could give the MPC a window of opportunity to raise Bank Rate by the middle of the year."

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UK housebuilder Bellway expects revenues for the first half of its financial year to rise 14%, after it sold more homes at higher prices.

Revenues for the six months to 31 January are set to hit £1.3bn, the company said. The number of housing completions rose 6.3%, while the average selling price climbed 7.8% to a record £276,000.

"Market conditions continue to be favourable and customer demand for new homes remains strong," Bellway said.

"Notwithstanding the modest increase in the Bank of England base rate in November, mortgage rates remain low by historical standards, ensuring that the cost of financing a new Bellway home remains affordable."

UK housebuilders have also benefited from the government's Help-to-Buy programme, which aims to help first-time buyers purchase a new-build property.

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Are we in for another day of stock market volatility? Well, the FTSE 100 has opened lower, down nearly 50 points at 7,232.71.

Embattled broadband provider TalkTalk is faring particularly badly, down 11% on news of its dividend cut and rights issue.

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Hundreds of jobs are at risk at struggling department store chain Debenhams, the Evening Standard reports, external.

The company is cutting 320 jobs across its 176 shops, according to the paper. It says London stores, including Oxford Circus and Westfield, are affected with a layer of in-store managers being axed.

The move comes after the retailer posted disappointing Christmas sales and issued a profit warning. Debenhams announced a £10m cost-saving plan in January.

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More about that trading update from TalkTalk.The broadband provider also announced that it was discussing a joint venture with infrastructure investment specialists Infracapital to provide full-fibre roll-out across the UK, following a successful trial in York.

Matthew Howett, founder and principal analyst at brand consultancy Assembly, told the Today programme that the commitment to invest in the technology was "good news".

TalkTalk had been having a "very tough time" recently, with "a lot of uncertainty" about its position in a "fiercely competitive" market, he said. A change of chief executive had led to a change in strategy.

He said the company was now showing a renewed emphasis on broadband, rather than trying to sell more comprehensive "quad-play" services.

"If they focus on one thing and do it reasonably well, there's no reason why they don't have a future," he added.

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Thomas Cook says it has had an "encouraging start" to the new year.

But even though revenues are up, increasing 7% to £1,749m in the first quarter, the travel firm still made a loss of £42m.

It said "based on current trading we expect our operating result for FY18 to be in line with current expectations."

In December it announced plans to close 50 of its 690 stores as part of a review of its UK retail network.

It said it has added a number of new destinations for summer 2018 including Montenegro, Sardinia, Dubrovnik, Olympus Riviera in Greece, Golden Sands in Bulgaria, Spain's Costa Brava and Madeira.

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Broadband firm TalkTalk has announced plans to raise £200m by a rights issue. At the same time, it said it was temporarily cutting its annual dividend from 7.5p per share to 2.5p.

The news came in the firm's third-quarter trading statement, which hailed a "positive" outlook ahead with "strong customer growth", but also spoke of "significant cost reductions as we radically simplify the business".

Executive chairman Charles Dunstone said the firm had "reset the business and returned it to quarter-on-quarter customer growth".

He added: "We anticipate revenue growth and strong earnings growth in the year ahead, as the benefits of a growing customer base and rigorous cost control begin to deliver the results this business is capable of."

Last month, the latest report from regulator Ofcom named TalkTalk as the most complained-about broadband firm in the UK.